How to play YouTube in the background on Android

YouTube is a hugely popular app for Android phones and tablets, but as soon as you go to do something else on your device the video stops playing. Our helpful guide explains how to play YouTube videos in the background on Android.

Keep listening to or playing YouTube video while checking Twitter or Facebook on your Android device.

YouTube is the largest online streaming service, and many of its daily views are of music videos played on mobile devices. A problem with that, though, is YouTube won't let users listen to video audio without having the app displayed onscreen, which means you can't do anything else with your device. (See all Android tutorials.)

The official YouTube app doesn’t allow you to continue to keep playing or at least listen to video, when you switch to another open app. However, third-party apps such as Awesome Pop-up Video offer portals to YouTube's content in a pop-up window.

Play YouTube in the background with Awesome Pop-up Video

1. To play YouTube video or audio in the background you'll need to download the free app Awesome Pop-up Video. So launch Google Play, search for the app, then click Install, accept the permissions and open the app.

2. When you first open the app you will be greeted with a message asking you to enable Awesome Pop-up Video to draw over other apps. Click Go To Settings and tap the toggle to enable this permission. It is required by the app because it works by placing a pop-up window over whatever else you might be doing onscreen.

3. Now return to the app and you'll see a list of popular videos. You can click any of these to play them, or use the magnifying glass icon at top right to search for a specific video.

4. When you have selected a video it will appear in a pop-up windows above the app.You can interact with this window by tapping on it and either enlarging it, moving it or closing it, but while it is visible onscreen your device's usual back, home and menu buttons will apply only to the window behind it. Tap the home button to see what we mean.